So.. that took longer than I thought!
Yes I’m back after a long break. If you’re interested I’ve started a new blog called “Eve of Disruption”.
Come on over, read and comment. It’s just starting but I’d love to any former readers make the transition.
Cheers,
Mike
Hi there.
About a year ago I shut down “Watching the Deniers” (WtD) and took an extended break from writing and the climate change debate. So to anyone who used to follow the blog welcome back.
I started WtD in 2010 and maintained it for more than four years. During that time I was welcomed into a broader community of writers, activists, scientists and researchers interested in climate change. During these years I had the great privilege of meeting many of these people, and feel some pride in having made a small contribution to the conversation.
But such commitment can come at a cost. The considerable effort to to research, write, edit and publish original content can be both time consuming and exhausting. After four years of “being in the trenches” I felt exhausted. I thought I’d take a few months off and recharge and get back to writing.
However, life events prevented this. I now call 2014 “The year of really interesting sh*t”.
I don’t wish to dwell on personal events, but suffice to say I had to deal with a number of significant issues. The year 2014 kicked off with me sending my beautiful daughter to her first year of school. She is thriving at school, and I’ve been amazed to the progress she has made. This happy event was a somewhat tinged by a personal betrayal. During the middle of the year I changed jobs, moving away from the corporate sector to the university sector, a move I’ve greatly enjoyed.
However without doubt the greatest challenge of 2014 was being diagnosed with a serious illness. Thankfully I got the right treatment and received the support of some incredible friends and family members. I’m not one to overstate things but there where some real dark nights of the soul. There’s no cure for what I have, however with lifestyle changes and continued adherence to medication and treatments it’s manageable.
Now I’ve decided it’s a good time to start writing again.
I’ll post this week about some interesting climate related news, but will also be launching a new blog.
Stay tuned, and thanks for stopping by once more.
As a side note: I’ve got zero tolerance for those hoping to come here or the new blog and debate the reality of climate change.
Mike @ WtD.
Dear all,
As you may have noted the posts have slowed down, so thanks for your patience.
I’m working on other projects at the moment, which means there’s no more room for WtD.
It has been a wonderful few years of blogging, and I’ve had the chance to meet some terrific people.
Thanks for the support, comments and debate.
I’ll announce new projects on here when the time comes, and I hope you’ll follow me then.
All the best. Keep up the good fight guys.
Signing off for the very last time.
Mike @ WtD
My most recent piece for Independent Australia, please share:
The warning cannot be any clearer:
“Australians, and the rest of the world’s citizens, must prepare to cope with a world that will be hotter than at any time in the history of the human species.”
That’s according to Professor Lesley Hughes at the Department of Biological Sciences at Macquarie University and lead author of the most recent IPCC report.
The just released report details both current and anticipated impacts of climate change (Working Group II).
Summarising some of the anticipated impacts, Professor Hughes stated:
“We will continue to see an increase in the impacts of extreme events such as heat waves, cyclones, droughts and bushfires, changed rainfall patterns, increased ocean acidification, and rising sea levels.
“The real fear is that at some point in the next few decades, without serious reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, we will pass a tipping point in the earth’s climate system.”
My most recent article for Independent Australia:
The March in March was a stunning success for the grass roots organisers, writes Mike Marriott, who says the sentiments shared by the marchers were remarkably similar.
“I’m devastated by what the Abbott is doing without debate. It’s getting worse. The ignorance of science is hard to fathom!”
That’s Richard.
He is standing on the steps of the State Library of Victoria, brandishing a sign in which a cartoon version of Prime Minister Abbott declares ‘Climate Change is Crap’.
He was among the 30,000 Victorians who marched in protest on Sunday in protest.
The March in March was a stunning success for the grass-roots organisers — a rival to the Vietnam Moratorium marches of 1970.
This wasn’t merely a small gathering of the disenfranchised. In attendance, one could find a true cross-section of the community.
Please tweet share and email!
Thanks,
Mike @ WtD
And some more. What an amazing day, I was a privilege to share it with so many other concerned citizens:
And some more:
I’ll be doing a post for Independent Australia, and commenting. But I took part in today’s march against the Abbott government’s assault on our society:
To see so many people expressing their concern, willing to give up their time and
Another “What th…” moment in the climate debate.
News coming in, need to verify and confirm (note original post has been taken down):
The elevation of Dr David Evans as a climate science adviser has a ring of familiarity.
Evans, a mining engineer with a PhD in mathematics, is not only a prominent climate change denier but subscribes to the conspiracy theory that “climate change is merely a cover for a massive power play”. His standing as a climate science expert is thus odd, but he is well enough credentialed for Tony Abbott. He is the person most likely to tell Tony Abbott what he wants to hear.
Yes, David Evans of the “Climate change is a global conspiracy” fame.
UPDATE
I’ve been seeking verification from various sources, and at this stage it would appear Evans has not become an adviser in any official capacity.
It was reported in various sources (hence my decision to comment), but without an official press release or confirmation from the Prime Minister’s office we can disregard what was reported. Initially I had some scepticism, hence the use of question marks and noting it needed to be verified in the original form of this post.
The best any of us in both the traditional and new media can do is verify facts and get confirmation. When we need to correct or clarify, we do so. The new media environment of Twitter and blogs is an exciting and fast paced. It is often the place where news is first reported. Just like traditional journalism what we do is the “first draft of history”. This means there are times when an error is reported. When this is the case, we fix it.
Many thanks.
Mike @ WtD
(Edited to reflect updates 11.2.14)
Dear all, I’m very proud that I managed to get a piece published with Independent Australia.
Its called “Lock the gates and take to the streets for climate change justice.”
If those of good conscience and moral courage do not act now, then we leave the fate of future generations to men like Abbott…
We need to shake-the-tree and rouse the Australian public from its present indifference. We need to pierce the walls of apathy and the pacifying effects of infotainment that currently cocoon the public from the challenge of climate change.
In order to achieve this we must, out of necessity, engage in acts of dissent and non-violent protest.
It is time to embrace all forms of civil disobedience.
Fortunately we do not need to wait for a leader of Martin Luther King’s or Mahatma Gandhi’s stature to inspire or instruct us.
There are three things you can do today ‒ right now ‒ that will help this campaign of civil disobedience.
Got to their site to see the full article – every click helps me!
And please, spread via social media.
Thanks!
Watching the Deniers 
